A KASHMIR TINNED COPPER SAMOVAR KETTLE, 19th CENTURYKashmir, Northern India, 19th century. Rising from an openwork base to a baluster body with hammered floral decoration within numerous vertical ribs, with a zoomorphic handle to one side and a hinged spout to the other; the hinged double lid similarly decorated, the small lid is to access the fire container in which charcoal and coals are placed, the larger lid opens to access both the coal container and the water space around it. Condition: Good condition with traces of use and wear, small dents here and there, few small nicks, and light scratches. Provenance: Estate of an Austrian collector, the collection was assembled in the 1980s – 1990s through purchases at Galerie Zacke and other specialized galleries in Vienna. The underside with an old collector’s number `18464 Or. 1654´.Weight: 1,500 g Dimensions: Height 28 cmLiterature comparison: For a related Kashmir Samovar kettle see the Victoria & Albert Museum, accession number IS 1264-1883.A Samovar is a traditional Kashmiri kettle used to brew, boil and serve Kashmiri salted tea and 'kahwa.' Originally a Russian invention, from where it travelled down south to Persia through the Silk Route.